A U.S. Attorney for the Western District of New York 2010 – 2016, Mr. Hochul talked about the ideals that led him to his long career in the legal field. He shared highlights of his extensive experience with why people resort to violence, what can help them turn from violence and what a community can do to assist people to live nonviolent lives.

A Cheektowaga native, Mr. Hochul received his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame in 1981 and his J.D. from SUNY Buffalo Law School in 1984. He currently serves as general counsel for Delaware North.

The event also honored William Marx and the Buffalo Peacemakers Gang Intervention and Outreach Program. Mr. Marx, a member of the Center’s board, is a long-time advocate of social justice, particularly through Pax Christi and as a facilitator of the Alternatives to Violence Project. Celebrating its fifth anniversary, the Peacemakers brings together existing peace-making groups to mentor youth, strengthen communities, enhance safety and reduce crime in Buffalo neighborhoods.

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SSJ Sister Karen Klimczak Center for Nonviolence Marks 10 Years of Service

April 2, 2017 "On the Edge of Violence and Nonviolence: The Challenging Words of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam"

Dr. Christopher Stanley, professor of theology at St. Bonaventure University, will speak at the SSJ Sister Karen Klimczak Center for Nonviolence’s annual fundraiser on April 2nd. SS. Columba & Brigid Parish (75 Hickory St.) will host the event at 3:00pm.

Dr. Stanley’s presentation, “On the Edge of Violence and Nonviolence,” will examine some key texts in all three Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity and Islam—that give divine sanction to both violence and nonviolence. Followers of the religions have long struggled to make sense of these directives and to understand how they can be applied today. Some benefits and dangers of guiding our lives by these texts will be discussed.

A lifelong activist and pacifist, Dr. Stanley has traveled the world to help people explore the role of religion in contemporary social conflicts. He will call us to respond nonviolently to the challenges facing our society today.

A celebration of the 10th anniversary of the SSJ Sister Karen Klimczak Center for Nonviolence and a reception will follow the presentation.

Tickets are $25 and are available by calling 362.9688, online at www.sisterkarencenter.org, or at the door.

Joining Together for All Our Brothers, Sisters, Children & Mother Earth

A warm and sunny day at Canalside on September 11th was the setting for the third annual Peace-Justice-Nonviolence Festival and Walk. The Sister Karen Center was one of over 125 sponsoring organizations which comprise the WNY Coalition ofPeace, Justice and Nonviolence Advocates. The lively festival was just one of the multitude of ways these groups are hard at work to reduce violence in our community and world.

The festival was intentionally planned on September 11th to reframe and rededicate the day in accordance with the vision of the September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows. The nonviolent examples of Martin Luther King Jr. and Sister Karen Klimczak, Buffalo’s Apostle of Peace, were an inspiration for the festival.

Members of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy opened the proceedings with a traditional Indigenous Nation’s Welcome and Thanksgiving to All Creation. The greeting was followed by an interfaith prayer and moment of silence for all victims of violence locally and throughout the world. Various speakers emphasized the interconnectedness of the violenceof racism, Islamophobia, misogyny, poverty, war, gun violence and the destruction ofMother Earth.

Participants were given a ribbon of fabric and asked to write on it a word or phrase that expresses peace, justice, and nonviolence. The ribbons were tied together and carried on a Walk of Peace with drumming and singing along the river to the marina gardens.

Throughout the festival over 400 attendees mingled at informational tables staffed by community organizations. (Sister Jean Klimczak gave out “I Leave Peaceprints” dove signs at the Sister Karen table!) Vendors offered tasty ethnic food. Facepainting by Charlotte Waltz-Rieber and craft-making were enjoyed by children of all ages.

In reflecting on the day, Sister Karen Center Director Vivian Waltz was quoted in the Buffalo News. “There are so many groups working for peace and justice in Buffalo, it’s important to get together and celebrate the work we do, especially now when people are so divided and there’s so much violence. Each year it’s a day of healing and peace.” (See home page for photos.)

“Radical acceptance” was the theme of Sister Simone Campbell’s presentation titled “Compassionate Conviction: Creating Change and Building Peace” at the eighth annual fundraising event for the SSJ Sister Karen Klimczak Center for Nonviolence. The event was held on a gorgeous spring day, Sunday, April 19th at St. Columba-Brigid Church in Buffalo.

As a tribute to Sister Simone’s “Nuns on the Bus” tours, participants entered the sanctuary through two large sides of an artist’s rendering of a bus, complete with real tires! The mood was celebratory with brightly colored Easter flowers still gracing the chancel area. We were thrilled to welcome Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul, U.S. Attorney Bill Hochul and NYS Senator Tim Kennedy present with us. Members of the Peacemakers Gang Intervention and Outreach program were also recognized.

Sister Simone began her talk by asserting that the challenge of nonviolence is to fully live our lives making room for the “other” and being willing to engage in authentic dialogue where everyone’s feelings and values are respected. This is the “radical acceptance” we are called to embrace. Simone admitted to thinking at one point in her life that certain people were “mistakes of God” (which elicited much laughter!). She confessed that her sin was being so certain that they were wrong.

Her relationship with Senator Paul Ryan was the example Simone shared. Since 2012 when Senator Ryan’sproposed budget included drastic cutbacks in the federal safety net (which precipitated the “Nuns on the Bus” tour), Simone has been working to understand the senator through dialogue even though their political views are often in conflict. She reported that radical acceptance has changed the way she lobbies. It is essential to creating change and building peace.

A crucial insight shared by Sister Simone is that in order to create change, especially with those who are so different from us, rather than fighting against a problem, we need to stand side-by-side with each other and fight for a common vision. Simone referred to Sister Karen in saying that, like her,we need to create alliances and look for “positive intersections” where we can work together.

Creating change and building peace through radical acceptance also means that we have to be willing to take in stories that break our hearts. Sister Simone used examples of people living in poverty in spite of the fact that they are working, even fulltime. She showed us a photograph of Margaret, a woman who died because she lost her healthcare along with her job. These tragedies are a form of violence.

Sister Simone’s conviction is that radical acceptance and working side by side for a vision kindles the fire of the Holy Spirit in our lives. She recalled the story of the burning bush where God is aware of the suffering of God’s people and has come to the rescue.

We need to be part of the rescue effort. We need to call others to this work through such practices as being “grocery store missionaries” where we engage others in dialogue about our democracy and who is being left out. We need to present a vision for change that can draw people in, a vision of a nation and a world without violence.

The presentation by Sister Simone ended with her affirming that it is in Sister Karen’s witness and faith as a servant that we find the seeds for nonviolence, creating change and building peace. As a reminder of the compassionate conviction of both Sister Simone and Sister Karen, audience members were given a packet of Forget-Me-Not seeds during the singing of “Peaceprints,” the song written to honor Sister Karen’s legacy.

For those who purchased it, Sister Simone autographed her book, A Nun on the Bus: How All of Us Can Create Hope, Chane, and Community, during the reception held in the social hall. Delicious food and treats along with vibrant conversation were enjoyed by all. Our annual fundraising event was a success in every way!